July 19th, 2010
Education News
Roundup
Articles posted by five reliably interesting sources of
news about higher education.
Amherst Point Bird Sanctuary
Source: http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/page.cgi?post=52894
July 19th, 2010
I've been on vacation this week and have taken the opportunity
to enjoy some brilliant weather in Canada's Maritime
vacationland. Monday Andrea and I went down to Tidnish
Dock (photos) provincial park, about an hour away. Yesterday
we went to the bird sanctuary at Amherst Point (photos , about
45 minutes away. And today I took a longer drive, two hours,
to explore the cliffs at Cape Chjignecto (no photos posted yet).
Stephen Downes, Flickr, July 16, 2010 [Tags: Canada , Flickr
] [ Link ] [ Comment ]
The Real Scandal at Illinois?
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/illinois
July 19th, 2010
If you want to study Buddhist or Methodist or Jewish thought
at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, there are
relevant courses in religious studies -- courses where the
instructors have been selected by a department of scholars,
through standard academic procedures.
But if you want to study Roman Catholicism, your instructors
have been through different vetting -- they will have been
nominated by (and their salaries paid by) the St. John's
Catholic Newman Center, a church organization independent
Published by: philosophyandrew
of the university, set up to serve Catholic students at the
university.
This arrangement has existed for decades, and been opposed
by faculty members -- also for decades. Not only is it highly
unusual for a college to give an outside group the right to
screen and nominate candidates to teach, but the situation
raises church-state issues at a public institution, presents
issues of fairness when it is permitted for only one religious
group at a secular college, and may undercut the values of the
field of religious studies, faculty critics say.
The way the University of Illinois teaches Catholic thought
has attracted widespread attention in the last week with the
news that a long-term instructor, Kenneth Howell, was told
that he would not be rehired, following complaints about
an e-mail message he sent to students, which many viewed
as misinformed about homosexuality, and as hostile to gay
people.
The case has become a cause célèbre. "Save Dr. Ken," a
Facebook group, has more than 5,000 members. The Alliance
Defense Fund, which defends the rights of religious students
and faculty members, is taking up his cause. So is the
Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, which issued
its analysis of the case on Friday.
Those defending Howell describe the case as being about
academic freedom. An instructor should be free to express
views on his or her subject matter, even views that offend
many, without fear of losing a job. (Howell was an adjunct and
so had none of the due process that would have been accorded
a tenured professor.) While some of those who are backing
Howell support his views on homosexuality, many don't -- and
say that the case is important for preserving academic values
of free and open discourse. Concerns about academic freedom
have already led the university to appoint a special faculty
committee to investigate the situation.
But according to some professors at Illinois and elsewhere,
what Howell's case illustrates is the long-term violation of
other academic principles -- a violation that has not spurred
Facebook groups or punditry. "This has never really been
about just one e-mail," said Nicholas C. Burbules, a professor
of education and former Senate president at the university.
"This has been an arrangement that has been rife with
potential for things to go wrong, and this seems to be an
instance in which things did go wrong. This was foreseen
and argued over for decades at the university, with faculty
members and some administrators trying for years to change
this arrangement."
Burbules said that he did not reject the idea that there are
academic freedom issues related to any question over whether
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July 19th, 2010
an instructor is punished for expressing controversial views.
But he said that he believed the religious studies department
that told Howell it didn't want him to teach anymore was
"absolutely getting an unfair" portrayal in public discussion of
the case. "This was a final straw" over an arrangement that
violates academic standards, Burbules said.
A Senate committee at Illinois is now again reviewing the link
between the university and the St. John's center -- which has
survived many such previous reviews.
A 1990 article in The Catholic Historical Review, "The
Catholic Presence at the University of Illinois," outlines how,
from the university's founding, students were assumed to
be Protestants, but that over the course of the last century,
services for Catholic students grew. Clergy ministered to
students, social clubs were organized and so forth. The first
part of the 20th century was also a time when many public
universities were hesitant about teaching religion (or hostile
to it) and the St. John's Center reached an agreement with
the university under which it would offer courses -- awarded
for credit -- in Catholic thought. Over time, the arrangement
shifted so that the courses were taught at the university, with
the instructors having adjunct faculty status. But instructors
had to be nominated by the center, and were paid by the center.
As the article recounts, faculty opposition to the arrangement
grew, especially as the university started offering traditional
academic courses in religious studies. During the late 1960s, a
series of faculty committees reviewed the arrangement, found
it faulty, and eventually won the support of administrators to
phase it out. But following an intense lobbying campaign by
Catholic leaders, the university's board took the unusual action
of rejecting a joint administrator-faculty proposal about an
academic matter.
Since then, there have been periodic attempts by the religion
department to teach about Catholicism the same way it teaches
about other faiths, with the most recent major attempt coming
about a decade ago, but faculty leaders say that they have been
rebuffed every time.
Robert McKim said that when he became chair of the religion
department at Illinois five years ago, he learned of the
"underlying sense of unease" about the arrangement. But
he also said that he was told that, given the way all efforts
to change the situation have failed, "there was no basis for
thinking that an effort to do something about it would be
successful."
McKim stressed that his concerns have nothing to do with
teaching about Catholicism, which he said should be part
of any religion curriculum. "This university is committed to
teaching about Catholic thought," he said.
The source of the "unease" about the way Catholicism has
been taught is about academic independence, he said. "We
have been asking how it can be that somebody can be
teaching a course about religion, funded by an external agency
with a religious agenda," he said. "We should teach about
Catholicism in the same way as every other religion, the same
as for Buddhism and Hinduism, and it works extremely well.
We would like to have as many courses in Catholic thought
as possible, but they should be taught by people who come
in the normal way." (A university spokeswoman said via e-
Published by: philosophyandrew
mail that there is no other case in any department where an
outside group pays for and nominates candidates for teaching
positions.)
Howell, the instructor whose e-mail set off the current debate,
did not respond to requests to comment for this article. He told
the Chicago Tribune that he believed he was answerable both
to the university and to the church for his work. He also told
the Tribune that he had sought a mandatum, a certification
provided by bishops that theologians teaching at Catholic
universities are doing so in accordance with Church teachings.
The requirement that theologians seek a mandatum has
been controversial with some theologians, who have feared
that their academic freedom would be limited. What may be
notable about Howell's request is that his courses are not at a
Catholic college or seen by the University of Illinois as theology
courses.
The St. John's Center has been quiet amid the media furor
of the last week over Howell. But on Friday, the center
released a statement, along with another from the Diocese of
Peoria, indicating that both groups were looking forward to
talking about the issues involved with university officials. The
statements indicated that the Catholic groups want Howell
to continue to teach the courses on Catholic thought, under
existing arrangements in which the center pays him.
The Religious Studies Mission
Experts in religious studies at other public universities said
that they do not have and would not support arrangements
similar to the one at Illinois. Further, they said that the
argument being put forth by many of Howell's defenders --
namely that Catholic taught should be taught by someone who
advocates Catholic beliefs -- suggested a misunderstanding
of the role of religious studies (as opposed to theology at a
religious institution).
David Brakke, chair of religious studies at Indiana University
at Bloomington, said, "The point of religious studies is to
study religion from the perspective of the humanities, not
in an oppositional or contrary way to religion, but in a way
that doesn't just look from the insider's perspective, but the
outsider as well," he said.
"When you have instructors paid for and selected by a religious
group, that undermines that distinction."
Brakke said that "there's nothing wrong with a good Catholic
teaching classes in Catholic studies, but the academic study
of religion has its own norms and values and anyone teaching
in that discipline needs to adhere to those norms and values,"
which would include subjecting every religious belief to
scrutiny and analysis. Only part of a religious studies course
is explaining what a given faith believes, he said. "We have to
explain why" a religion acts as it does, he said, and why some
would disagree.
And religious studies "is quite different from advocating a faith
as the true way and telling students they should conform their
lives to that tradition," he said. It is also a tradition of religious
studies professors that they explain faiths in ways that their
students -- regardless of whether they are members of a given
faith or not -- "will not feel that they will be shut down."
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July 19th, 2010
Ann Taves, president of the American Academy of Religion
and professor of religious studies at the University of
California at Santa Barbara, said that defining religious studies
as an academic field about religion, not one that seeks to
promote a given religion, is a distinction that most often comes
up in fund raising. But she said it was crucial to the field to
maintain its independence.
So, for example, when raising money for endowed chairs,
colleges and universities must make clear to donors who want
to endow a chair for study of a particular faith that the donors
will have no control over the selection of the person who will
hold the chair or of that person's teaching or scholarship.
Taves said that she does not make this distinction to denigrate
the way various religions teach their faiths to fellow believers,
but to note the differing roles of religions and of religious
studies faculty members. "Religions have their own obligation
to teach people what it means to be a practicing Catholic or
Hindu or Jew, but that's not the purpose of a [nonsectarian]
university," she said. "Our goal is to teach people about
religious traditions, as we do in the humanities and the liberal
arts." There is nothing wrong with what religions do, "but
that's a different task," she said.
"The formation of people's religious beliefs with a religion
needs to go to campus ministry or faith-based bodies," she
said.
As to the academic freedom issues related to Howell, Taves
said she did not know the details of the case. She said that she
would "totally support any professors explaining the teachings
of a religion," even if those teachings may offend people. That
means that just because a university may have a policy of not
engaging in anti-gay bias "doesn't make it illegitimate to teach
what the Catholic church teaches about homosexuality."
At the same time, however, she said that the role of religious
studies doesn't stop there. "Teaching about Catholic teachings
must also include the objections to them and must include
ideas that may not be approved of or even acknowledged by
the church," she said.
With an endowed chair or an instructor for a single course,
she said that it is crucial that the balance be made with
full academic independence. "For exactly the reasons being
discussed [at Illinois], you need to have distance between the
teachings of the faith tradition and the kinds of approaches
that are taken within a religious studies department."
Position Summary: The Department of Religion at Princeton
University has an occasional need for lecturers to teach or co-
teach/precept in areas such ...
Xavier University, Department of Theology, invites
applications for a tenure-track position in Comparative
Theology at the Assistant Professor level ...
MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE, MIDDLEBURY, VT 05753 The
Department of Religion announces a tenure-track position in
Islam. Candidates will be expected to teach ...
The Religious Studies Dept comprises seven faculty who
research and teach on several religious traditions and multiple
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Published by: philosophyandrew
WHEATON COLLEGE seeks candidates for an assistant
professor of theology. The position is a full-time, tenure track
appointment to begin in August ...
Warning: Suspicious
Conferences
Source: http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/page.cgi?post=52893
July 19th, 2010
The word has been going out around our office to
beware of some suspicious conferences advertising non-
genuine advisory committees. Peter Turney writes, "Why
would conferences spam researchers and add people to their
program committee lists without asking? Because conferences
make money, by charging hefty registration fees. Are you
a researcher in computer science? You might find your
name on one of these program committees." Peter Turney,
Apperceptual, July 16, 2010 [Tags: Marketing , Research ,
Spam ] [ Link ] [ Comment ]
NBC News to Hold Education
Summit
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/qt/
nbc_news_to_hold_education_summit
July 19th, 2010
NBC News today announced "Education Nation," a week of
events in September that will bring together leaders from
politics, all levels of education and policy experts, focused on a
two-day summit at Rockefeller Plaza. Attendees are expected
to include U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, New York
City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Delaware Gov. Jack Markell,
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, and Al Sharpton. University
presidents who will be participating include Susan Hockfield,
president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and
Bill Pepicello, president of University of Phoenix. Several
hundred people -- including students and parents -- are
expected at the summit. Content from the summit and special
stories on education issues will be featured on “NBC Nightly
News,” “Today,” “Meet the Press,” “Your Business,” MSNBC,
CNBC, Telemundo, msnbc.com and nbclearn.com . NBC
announced that the effort is also being supported by the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation, the University of Phoenix, the Eli
and Edythe Broad Foundation, American Express, Raytheon,
Tishman Speyer and Scholastic.
The Myth of the Echo Chamber
Source: http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/page.cgi?post=52892
July 19th, 2010
Karl Fisch says bluntly, "There is no 'echo chamber.' It's
a myth." The comment is probably in response to Ethan
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July 19th, 2010
Zuckerman , though there is no link. Fisch writes, "Not
only do I think there is no echo chamber, I think there is
also tremendous power in having discussions with people
who do think in a similar (although not exact) way to you.
Communities of similarly-minded people, passionate people,
working in concert, can accomplish amazing things. We
shouldn't denigrate that, we should celebrate it." Also: Mike
Caulfield writes , "I can't see Facebook as brilliant -- quite
the opposite, it succeeded by tapping into the two most
xenophobic markets in the U.S. -- college students and Silicon
Valley." True, too true. Karl Fisch, The Fischbowl, July 16,
2010 [Tags: none] [ Link ] [ Comment ]
Writing IS Thinking
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/advice/summer/summer6
July 19th, 2010
Last week’s column (Lower Your Standards) generated the
most mail I’ve ever received! I’m guessing that the outpouring
occurred because naming what’s underneath our resistance
provides a sense of relief from the idea that we are the
only ones who experience debilitating perfectionism. Knowing
it is a common problem among academic writers helps to
normalize discussion of our unrealistically high expectations
and work toward compassionately adjusting them. I was also
pleased to hear that many of you experienced important
personal insights by trying out the suggested strategies. Given
that perfectionism is just one of the demons that underlie
resistance to writing, we should keep moving forward. This
week, I want to describe a problem that is often experienced
but rarely discussed: disempowerment when it comes to
writing.
Many of us hold an incredibly limiting set of beliefs about the
writing process, the relationship between our thoughts and the
physical act of writing, and what it takes to sit down and write.
When I ask people to describe their writing process, what often
surfaces is the idea that writing is what happens AFTER they
have read everything there is to read, clearly and thoroughly
worked out an idea in their heads, and have large blocks of
time to empty the fully-developed idea onto the page (or into
the computer). In other words, “writing” is simply the physical
act a scholar engages in after she’s gotten everything figured
out internally. Hand-in-hand with this exclusively mechanical
understanding of writing is the sense that particular emotional
states are a prerequisite for writing. In other words, people
frequently tell me they need to FEEL _________ (inspired,
excited, energized, confident, clear, etc.) before they can sit
down and write. As you can imagine, people who need to feel
perfectly inspired and have a fully formed article in their head
before sitting down at their desk rarely write.
I’m describing this as problematic for three reasons. First
and foremost, it’s a highly inefficient way to write and
often provokes anxiety. That’s because you don’t know when
inspiration is going to strike and you can’t control it. So if
you’re sitting around waiting to feel inspired to write, it’s
no surprise that you might experience some anxiety about
writing. Secondly, if you’re on the tenure track, the length
of time between completing a manuscript and its publication
is just too long for you to abstain from writing until you’ve
Published by: philosophyandrew
figured everything out AND feel inspired. Finally, and most
importantly, when we set a broad array of conditions that are
beyond our control for what must occur before we can start
generating pages, it reveals a deep sense of disempowerment,
distrust, and confusion about what happens when you write.
In other words it suggests that writing controls you when in
reality, you control your writing.
“Writing IS Thinking!”
Last year I attended a conference for faculty developers that
rocked my world! In part, it was exciting to learn about the
newest research on faculty productivity and inspiring to meet
the energetic, knowledgeable, and infinitely resourceful set
of practitioners who work with faculty on campuses across
the U.S. But what’s directly relevant for this column is the
workshop I took with Joanne Cooper and Dannelle Stevens.
I remember Dannelle (a walking ball of energy) getting very
animated when some of us described writing as what we
do after our thinking is complete. In fact, I remember her
exclaiming: “NO! Writing IS thinking!”
I’m a little slow in the presence of new ideas and I couldn’t
really get my head around the concept that writing IS
thinking during the workshop. But I have come to believe that
understanding the fundamental truth of this idea is the key to
overcoming disempowerment. If writing is thinking, then you
don’t have to wait until you’re done reading, analyzing data,
or figuring everything out to get started. You can write before,
during, and after the research process. In fact, it’s the best
justification for daily writing imaginable: writing every day
enables you to think about your project, generate new insights,
and move forward every single day! It’s also the case that it
eliminates the need to feel any particular way as a prerequisite
to writing because you can think about your project if you’re
happy, sad, inspired, or flat-out cranky. Finally, it lowers the
bar and puts you in the driver’s seat. If writing is thinking,
then it feels a lot less scary to sit down for 30-60 minutes
every day. I don’t have to produce a perfect first draft, I don’t
have to capture a sophisticated argument on the first try, and
I don’t have to generate elegant prose -- I only have to get my
half-baked ideas onto paper and once they are the page, I can
see them for what they are and proceed to question, massage,
and play with them while remaining perpetually open to the
surprises that occur when I’m actually engaged in the writing
process.
Now that I’ve described the big picture, let me suggest some
specific strategies that may allow you to release yourself from
any flawed beliefs you have about writing, sneak around your
resistance, and slowly but surely ease into daily productivity:
Commit to daily writing
I know I say this every week, but it bears repeating. If you’re
not writing, block out 30-60 minutes every day, Monday
through Friday, for writing. Don’t just say you’ll do it, really
try it for two weeks. And don’t forget to build in some
accountability because trying to start a new habit alone is a
recipe for misery and isolation. Whenever I work with people
whose resistance comes from feeling disempowered about
writing, I ask them to write every day for 30-60 minutes. When
they actually write every day consistently, they are astounded
to learn that: 1) they can write no matter how they feel, 2) a
4
July 19th, 2010
lot can be accomplished in a short amount of time, and 3) it’s
deeply intellectually satisfying to be close to their work on a
daily basis.
Expand your sense of what "counts" as writing
I get lots of questions about what types of writing are
acceptable during your daily writing time. If the pen is
moving on the page (or your fingers on the keyboard),
then you’re writing. Drafting a manuscript “counts,” but so
does freewriting, generating field-notes, editing and revising,
outlining, mind-mapping, describing a new idea, preparing
a bibliography, consolidating reviewer comments into a list
for revision, etc. In other words, anything that helps move a
manuscript out the door “counts” as writing. Expanding your
notion of what constitutes writing should help you reduce your
resistance by making daily writing feel like a normal part of
your every day routine.
Freewriting
I think freewriting has a bad rap among academics. I often
hear people demean and belittle freewriting as just “writing
about nothing” and I have to admit that at first, I rolled my
eyes in the workshop when we did a freewriting exercise. But,
according to Dannelle Stevens, the reason it works is because
the initial writing “clears the dust off the road” and bring our
attention to writing. When we then shift to focused freewriting,
we inevitably experience up all manner of surprises. Your job
is to get your butt in the chair and the pen moving. Once
the writing starts, that’s when the thinking (and the creative
magic) happens. If you would like to make a game of it, try
Dr. Wicked’s Write or Die. Ten minutes on “kamikaze” mode
is how I started writing this column!
Switch it up
I’m not sure how to explain it, but there’s something that shifts
in your brain when you move from writing on the computer
to good old-fashioned pencil and paper. Many people find it
helpful to change the mode of writing when they get stuck. It’s
really quite simple, just push your keyboard off to the side,
grab a pencil and paper, and start writing longhand through
the problem. The changed format and tactile stimulation will
help you to think differently. Personally, I keep a can of
markers and a giant newsprint pad next to my desk. When I’m
stuck, I just lay on the floor with my markers (kindergarten
style) and start mind-mapping. This technique never fails
to produce remarkable surprises and often generates a
breakthrough in my thinking.
Don’t stare at a blank screen
If sitting down to write feels scary because you get locked
up when you see a blank file on your computer screen, then
don’t look at it. Turn off your monitor or throw something
over it (a sweater, a towel, a pillowcase, or whatever is handy).
Remember, you control it, not the other way around. Then just
start typing. Sometimes, just blocking the debilitating image
of the blank screen can help you get started, and once you get
started the ideas begin to flow. This technique also will help
you to separate drafting from editing (a toxic combination).
You can’t see what you’re writing, so you’ll be less tempted to
edit it as soon as it hits the page. You can also record your
Published by: philosophyandrew
voice talking through the issue and transcribe your chatter as
a means of getting words onto the page.
Ultimately, the goal of each of these strategies is to disrupt
and undermine the flawed beliefs that writing happens after
thinking and that you must be inspired to write. Instead,
I’m urging you to understand your writing and thinking as
inextricably intertwined so that you can quickly begin moving
on your summer writing project.
Weekly Challenge
This week I challenge you to:
• Write 30-60 minutes each day.
• If you experience resistance, ask yourself: What is
stopping me from writing? As a first step, try some
organizational tips and tricks.
• If your resistance continues, ask yourself: What’s going
on here?
• If the answer is that you just don’t feel like writing, or
that you can’t write because you’re still figuring out your
argument in your head, try 10 minutes of freewriting as
a way to get yourself started.
• If opening a new document and staring at a blank page
intimidates you, turn off your screen or cover it up.
• If you find yourself stuck during your writing time, try
turning away from the computer and writing longhand,
recording your voice, or mind-mapping for a little while.
• Try joining some community of writers to support you as
you establish new writing behaviors and beliefs.
• Get to know the faculty developers on your campus!
They are a tremendous resource to help you teach
effectively, publish prolifically, and find some balance in
your academic career.
I hope that this week brings you a renewed commitment to
your daily writing, a sense of clarity about the connection
between writing and thinking, and the confidence to know that
you have the power to write every single day this week. No
matter how you feel or where you are in your project, you can
choose to sit down and get started today!
Peace and Productivity,
Kerry Ann Rockquemore
The Department of Government in the School of Public Affairs
at American University invites applications for a tenure track
position as an Assistant ...
The successful candidate will join the department of
Communications which has over 28,000 enrollments per year.
The new Director will lead a ...
If Then Why
Source: http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/page.cgi?post=52888
July 19th, 2010
5
July 19th, 2010
Graham Wegner asks a series of good questions. I wouldn't
mind seeing people try to answer them. Also, I like the "if -
then why" pattern he uses. Because I like patterns, especially
interesting ones. Graham Wegner, Open Educator, July 16,
2010 [Tags: none] [ Link ] [ Comment ]
For One, for All
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/notetaking
July 19th, 2010
ORLANDO — When advocates for students with disabilities
asked Stephen Rehberg, an associate academic professional at
Georgia Tech’s Center of Enhanced Teaching and Learning, to
help create workshops to teach science and technology faculty
members how better to accommodate disabled students,
Rehberg’s answer was simple: “No.”
“Trying to teach faculty about accessibility is a dead end,”
Rehberg said last week, during a session as Blackboard’s
annual user conference here. “They’re not going to come to the
workshops, and [if] they get there, they’re going to glaze over.
I said, ‘I’m not going to waste my time or the grant money.’ ”
Instead, Rehberg made a counter-proposal to his suitors from
the Center for Assistive Technology and Environment Access:
He would design a STEM class catering to the needs of
disabled students with the hypothesis that it would improve
engagement for everybody — specifically, students in huge
lecture courses.
“At Georgia Tech, we have many classes that are 300
[students] and up, and it’s a big problem,” says Rehberg,
who believes such conditions are not conducive to holding
students’ attention, whether or not they disabilities. “It’s hard
to hear, it’s hard to see the presentation, it’s hard to not be
distracted… there’s just too many people; it becomes a very bad
learning environment.”
So Rehberg and his colleagues considered various pedagogical
strategies known to boost learning for students with
disabilities, and settled on three. The first two were pretty
basic, and certainly not unique: The university would make all
the electronic documents were accessible, and it would create
electronic discussion threads in the learning-management
system, where students could discuss the material.
The third measure is the one that Rehberg highlighted as
having the greatest impact: collaborative note-taking.
Here’s how it worked in one pilot — a biology course taught
by Peggy Brickman, an associate professor at the University of
Georgia, on which Rehberg focused his talk:
The course would be divided up into 50 groups, consisting
of six or seven students each. Each student within the group
would have a job: two would take notes on the lectures;
two more would formulate several multiple-choice questions
and post them to the discussion thread in the learning-
management system, along with a rationale for how the
questions sync up with the lesson’s learning objectives, and
descriptions of why each answer is either right or wrong; one
student would be in charge of checking teammates’ work; and
another would be in charge of managing the team that week.
Each team would have to complete these duties every other
Published by: philosophyandrew
week, and each time around the students’ roles with their team
would rotate.
Why note-taking? First, it was consistent with Rehberg’s thesis
that pedagogical methods that benefit disabled students in
any classroom would benefit all students in a massive lecture
hall. “If we have students with certain disabilities, we must
provide professional note-takers,” Rehberg said. “And I said,
‘Why don’t we just extend that: Let’s do group note-taking,
and honor those who have exemplary notes so that others can
model [their work after it]. And that was sort of where it took
off.”
Also, Rehberg said, note-taking is a skill necessary to collegiate
success that plenty of students might never have learned.
“Freshmen at our school — we’re not even sure if they know
how to take notes at a college level.”
Brickman, who was scheduled to present at the conference
alongside Rehberg but had to cancel, assigned students to
evaluate the other groups’ notes and questions according
to a simple rubric. That way, Rehberg said, the students’
understanding of the concepts would be reinforced by thinking
critically about their classmates’ interpretations. Brickman
would then review the peer reviews, which would count for 17
percent of each student’s final grade for the course.
Rehberg said he and Brickman consider the experiment a
success. Over the course of the semester, the average score
given for the notes and study questions rose from about 7.6
out of 9, to 8.5. In self-evaluations, students generally said
the unremitting responsibilities associated with the exercise
forced them to be better organized and focus more on the
lectures. And Brickman reported that many students asked
more questions and were not satisfied to move on if they did
not understand something.
Challenges Remain
However, the trial also exposed some glaring problems
with the model. First, there was the perennial hazard of
collaborative work: Students complained that members of
their group would slack off. They also worried about the
peer-review aspect — that their classmates, despite instructor
oversight, might score their notes and questions arbitrarily or
even retributively, affecting their overall grade unfairly.
In an e-mail to Inside Higher Ed, Brickman said the fact that
students often lacked the skills to give each other constructive
feedback on their notes also cast a pall on their usefulness. And
with 300 students, a Brickman could not hope to review all the
notes herself, even with the help of teaching assistants.
Rehberg said he and Brickman had discussed making peer
review optional and perhaps making peer assessment a matter
of extra credit. Of course, that could take away the incentive
to take notes well, blowing the whole deal. Indeed, Brickman
noted in her own reflections that some students might have
been slacking off even more than usual when it was not their
turn to take notes, since they knew there would be virtual
reams of notes on each lecture available through the course
page.
Brickman said in her e-mail that researchers are currently
trying to assess the effect of each role on student performance,
6
July 19th, 2010
“but we are having difficulty on how to exactly analyze the
data.”
Job Summary/Basic Function: The Course Content
Coordinator - Lecture Capture position serves as the primary
application administrator for the lecture ...
Qualifications: Possess a bachelors degree in Math, Science
or related field required 2 years higher education advising
experience required 2 years ...
Co-Publishing
Source: http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/page.cgi?post=52887
July 19th, 2010
I've thought from time to time about a 'newspaper layout'
for OLDaily over the years. I've never been happy with what I
could come up with. And while http://paper.li/ isn't exactly it,
to me, it's close. I like what Doug Peterson has done with it to
create Ontario-educators Daily . The Twitter feed on the right
works wekk, and it's good to have multiple contributors (more
evident from the list view ). Doug Peterson, doug – off the
record, July 16, 2010 [Tags: Twitter , Thomson Corporation
] [ Link ] [ Comment ]
Net Price vs. Net Worth
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2010/07/19/barnds
July 19th, 2010
In just over a year, federal law will require all colleges to use
a Net-Price Calculator (NPC), which will allow prospective
students and families to punch in their basic income data and
immediately discover their out-of-pocket cost to enroll. How
nice. It seems like a consumer-friendly approach, like a cereal
company telling you how many ounces of cereal are in the
box, or grams of sugar in a serving. So why do I anticipate
weighty discussion of the NPC at the gathering of the National
Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators this
month?
In 2008, the Higher Education Opportunity Act introduced
the NPC as a way for colleges to be more transparent about
pricing and cost of attendance. Certainly all who navigate the
murky territory of college financing and comparison shopping
deserve access to information that will clear the air. While the
Department of Education has developed an NPC to be readily
available and free for widespread use, colleges and countless
vendors are leaping to create their own customized versions.
My own institution, Augustana College, plans to begin using
an NPC this fall. Yet I offer some observations to keep in mind
as the NPC becomes commonplace, as I believe the end result
of using a calculator includes flaws that could impact access to
higher education in unintended ways.
What about value?
NPC focuses on price alone. While I certainly understand the
desire for families to know price and net cost earlier in the
college search, I have deep concerns about the emphasis on
price truncating a thoughtful college search focused on worth
Published by: philosophyandrew
and match. The NPC is sure to further the commodification of
the college degree in ways that will make many uncomfortable.
It also could perpetuate the phenomenon of qualified students
“under-matching" — the latest term used to describe when
students choose not enroll at the college that is their best
match, academically and co-curricularly, and choose a college
based on the lowest cost. Furthermore, focusing on price
foremost clouds the idea that a “value gap” exists between
colleges. We will communicate to prospective students and
their families that putting price first — rather than discerning
the personal and professional value of that college experience
— is the best approach to finding the right place. This approach
could force the premature end of a prospective student’s
relationship with an ideal college. I fear the NPC will not allow
students to reach the point where they can fall in love with their
dream school and make a well-informed decision, but rather
force them to just settle on a college.
Garbage in, garbage out
The NPC will not remedy the complexities of financial
assistance and will never be as simple as bureaucrats and
politicians would like. This year, my college’s financial
assistance staff corrected an astonishing 80 percent of the
FAFSAs submitted by students who also sent tax returns.
These revisions are done to ensure accuracy and equitable
distribution of resources, and can result in a greater offer of
financial aid for the student. Regrettably, due to issues related
to volume or timing, the NPC results are unlikely to receive
the same attention from financial aid professionals. In many
cases, users will enter incorrect information and then believe
the corresponding results — and utterly wrong information —
provided by the NPC.
Who are the real users of the NPC?
I understand many advocates of the NPC believe it will
provide better financial information about higher education,
particularly for traditionally underserved populations, by
demonstrating how a combination of resources (grants, loans,
scholarships, work study, etc.) can make college affordable.
But the primary users of the NPC may be the “let’s make
a deal” crowd, which also have been the primary users of
early financial aid estimators. This group of families, who are
typically upper-income and can afford to pay more for college,
could use the results of the NPC to accelerate the financial aid
“arms race” and advance negotiations to the applicant stage. I
can already envision the call from the parent of a high school
sophomore volleying off the results of the NPC from one of my
competitors and asking me to guarantee a similar net price.
The latest, greatest marketing tool
While Congress had hoped it would provide truth in
transparency, vendors are touting the NPC as the next
great marketing tool. To compete in this new price-focused
world, colleges will be moved to offer guaranteed aid to
entice prospective students into the funnel earlier. The effort
very likely will force colleges to expand merit scholarship
programs and siphon an increasing amount of aid from need-
based commitments. Individual scholarship amounts will then
increase in order to reduce the net-price earlier, and a larger
proportion of financial aid overall will be dedicated to merit-
based aid. The end result? Students with the greatest financial
7
July 19th, 2010
need will be harmed by this further shift in policy and college
options.
I doubt this was an outcome the feds envisioned, but because
of vendor interest in the tool, I am preparing to see the results
of many NPCs demonstrating a net price to attend college at
zero dollars. We already see financial aid packages with PLUS
loans of $20,000 to ensure the net price looks attractive, or,
even better, free. I am quite sure we’ll see the same for NPC
results. What will be the limits between real net price and
marketed net price? The NPC is likely to be used at a much
earlier stage and has the potential to create an obfuscated
college search that students might not realize until it’s too late.
Will years five and six stand and be counted?
While there is discussion about a multi-year NPC, I find it
difficult to believe any such tool will provide the necessary
transparency to be helpful. The higher education industry
continues to be scrutinized for its poor four-year graduation
rates. How will this trend impact the NPC? Will a dialogue
box pop up once data is submitted indicating “only one of
two students graduate from X college in four years; therefore,
we’ve automatically included a fifth year in our net-price
calculation”? I doubt we will see this, which means the
transparency we seek is still elusive.
I’d like to think I am wrong, and hope to see evidence
of the NPC increasing access, creating transparency about
the process, forcing college staff to be more sensitive to
questions about price and cost, and improving the experience
for students and parents. But I am skeptical.
Can the flaws be averted? Could we introduce methods for
using the NPC that could impact the results in unexpected,
positive ways? We could take steps toward more effective
implementation:
Select the right one: A one-size-fits-all solution is highly
unlikely, so take the time necessary to select the right NPC
to fit your needs, and be wary of bells and whistles that will
accompany it. Developing an NPC in-house may allow you the
necessary customization to deliver accurate information. Or
you might partner with your existing financial aid consultant,
who is aware of your institution’s character, strategies and
goals. With a year to implement, take the time to compare and
contrast the calculators available and choose the best one for
you.
Make completing the NPC an expectation of your prospects: A
recent study conducted by the Arts & Science Group found low
use of financial aid calculators despite the availability. This is
troubling, and suggests an effective communication strategy
is critical. For the greatest impact, colleges should include the
NPC on a to-do list associated with the recruitment process.
Think about how and when you will ask prospective students
to complete the NPC. Admissions and financial assistance staff
should discuss this action in the same way we do application,
FAFSA, housing and enrollment deadlines.
Prepare and train your admissions staff: The NPC will require
admissions staff to be far more articulate about value, price
and cost. Rethink the content and timing of staff training
on financial aid, to ensure they are equipped to discuss the
NPC during fall recruitment. Have your admissions counselors
Published by: philosophyandrew
complete your NPC using their own information as a test.
Train them to be advocates for the process and to understand
what a family undergoes when completing your calculator.
And if you believe your NPC is different from other colleges
— especially if those differences are valuable differentiators
— make sure your admissions staff can clearly identify those
differences and describe why the results are better. Your
admissions staff and their knowledge about your NPC will
make or break successful implementation.
Deliver useful information: Early estimates of financial
assistance have been provided to prospective families as a
service for years. But has it been useful? I am not sure it’s
helpful when the estimate includes so many cautions and
wide ranges of aid. As you think about what to deliver,
think carefully about the pertinence of the information.
Shades of gray among wide ranges of potential aid, and
phrasing weakened by “may,” “could” or “might,” will cloud
the transparency in unsettling ways.
Use the results to develop a deeper relationship: Admissions
or financial assistance counseling is about conversations and
building relationships. As you select and implement your
NPC, think about how to engage prospects who complete it.
How will you reach out to them? Will you have a procedure
for contacting each student and clarifying results? How will
completing the NPC be viewed in regard to demonstrating
interest? What can you deliver (e.g. service, publications, etc.)
to those who complete the NPC? Build your plan now — while
selecting your NPC — for assertive follow-up, communication
and connection.
I believe in the underlying objectives that have brought the
NPC to the forefront: more transparency, more choice and
greater access to higher education. But I don’t think this tool
and the technology behind it can do it alone. To improve its
chances for success — with students and the colleges they
seek — our enrollment professionals will need to attend to the
basics: build stronger relationships with prospective students
and their families, communicate in a clearer manner about
costs and value, and make the NPC work for the best college
match.
Position Summary: The Admissions Counselor serves as the
campus contact for prospective students, their families, and
high school counselors. Their ...
The purpose of Southeastern Institute is to offer quality
career education. Our programs focus on specialized skills and
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Job Description The Assistant Registrar for Academic
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Job Description Under general supervision, performs client
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specific emphasis on ...
Artists Block Work From Being
Shown at Brandeis
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/qt/
artists_block_work_from_being_shown_at_brandeis
8
July 19th, 2010
July 19th, 2010
Three artists whose work was to have been displayed in
an exhibit at Brandeis University in the fall have pulled
permission as a protest of the university's policies on its
own collection of art, The Boston Globe reported. The
university originally planned to sell its noted collection of
modern art, likely worth hundreds of millions of dollars. While
the university -- facing widespread criticism -- put the plan
on hold, it has yet to rule out sales. The three artists are Bill
Viola, who works with videos, and the painters April Gornik
and Eric Fischl. Gornik told the Globe: "Frankly, I had
thought the whole controversy had been resolved and that
the collection was safe and not in danger of being sold....
I didn’t realize there was so much possibility of it being
sold. We’ve been very encouraged that the president of the
university apparently stated that he doesn’t intend to sell the
collection, but without some sort of legally binding evidence,
we’ve decided to postpone the show.’’
ETS Suspends TOEFL
Registration in Iran
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/qt/
ets_suspends_toefl_registration_in_iran
July 19th, 2010
The Educational Testing Service announced last week that
it is suspending registrations in Iran for the Test of English
as a Foreign Language. ETS cited the new sanctions against
Iran adopted by the United Nations and the United States,
which make it impossible for ETS to handle payments from
Iran. The New York Times reported that many experts
on international education are outraged by this news, given
that the TOEFL is taken by Iranians who want to come
study in the United States -- precisely those Iranians who
may someday promote democracy in their home country.
An official with the International English Language Testing
System, a British-based system known by the acronym IELTS,
which is a competitor to TOEFL, told Inside Higher Ed that
IELTS continues to be offered in Iran.
Jury Awards $545,000 to Ex-
Coach in Title IX Dispute
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/qt/
jury_awards_545_000_to_ex_coach_in_title_ix_dispute
July 19th, 2010
A jury on Thursday awarded $545,000 to Trev Kiser,
the former women's basketball coach at Clark College, in
Washington State, who charged wrongful termination over his
advocacy for female athletes, The Columbian reported.
Clark's president, Bob Knight told the newspaper: “I would
just have to say we are disappointed in the verdict. Clark
College is reviewing our options. It would be inappropriate
to comment further.” Knight was not at the college Kiser was
dismissed.
Published by: philosophyandrew
Colleges and the Common
Core
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/core
July 19th, 2010
MINNEAPOLIS -- For years, educators and policy makers
have been talking about the need to better align K-12 and
higher education, so that students coming out of high school
have the skills and knowledge they need to do college-
level work (and, not unimportantly, to reduce the need for
remediation once students are in college).
But while many colleges in involved in various ways in their
local communities' school systems, and virtually all states
have created "P-16" or "K-20" councils aimed, among other
things, at aligning high school graduation and college entrance
standards, progress in creating a "seamless" education system,
for students and states alike, has generally been seen as
limited.
Higher education and K-12 "have frequently operated as if
they reside in different universes," Education Secretary Arne
Duncan said here Friday at the first-ever joint meeting of the
Council of Chief State School Officers and the State Higher
Education Executive Officers.
The relationship between elementary and secondary
education too often continues to be marked by finger pointing
between the sectors, which the leaders of the two groups
mimicked from the dais at last week's meeting.
"The reason we have problems is because you don't train the
teachers well," is high school principals' frequent complaint
about schools of education, said Gene Wilhoit, executive
director of the state school officers' group.
The knee-jerk comeback from college professors and
administrators, said Paul Lingenfelter, president of the state
higher education officers' association: "The students you send
us aren't prepared, so we have to spend all our energies on
remediation."
The two men are hopeful that the impetus for the meeting
at which they spoke last week -- the recent establishment of
a set of common core standards for high school graduates --
presents an opportunity to start to end what Wilhoit called
the "repetitive cycle of nonproductive activity" and take the
collaboration between K-12 and higher education to a new
level.
The establishment of common core standards for high school
graduates is of course first and foremost a matter of concern
for elementary and secondary school officials, and the creation
of the standards is barely on the radar screen of many college
administrators and professors. And yet it is clear that the
standards will be truly meaningful and useful only if they are
fully embraced by higher education.
Only if colleges align their own admissions and placement
policies with the common core standards (and agree to use
the common assessments that are likely to be developed to
gauge mastery of the standards) will high school students and
their schools know what to shoot for, Lingenfelter and Wilhoit
said. And only if colleges of education begin to reframe their
curriculums and practices for training teachers and school
9
July 19th, 2010
administrators and their professional development programs
for working teachers in response to the standards will schools
have the future work force to carry out the standards.
The discussions among the state superintendents and higher
education chancellors and commissioners who met here
offered some reason for optimism for those who believe that
better alignment between high school and higher education is
essential to the goal of raising the level of college attainment
and completion in the United States. (So too did the fact that
they took place at all; much was made of the fact that the
two groups had never met jointly before, with one state school
officer holding up the morning newspaper and joking that if
BP had figured out how to cap the Gulf Coast oil well, "then I
know we can collaborate with SHEEO.")
"The fact that we’ve stepped up and said, 'We expect for every
student exiting our system to be college- or career-ready,'
drops on your doorstep an opportunity: to continue to engage
with us in a process of discovery," Wilhoit said to the higher
ed leaders in the group. "I don't think the wisdom [to improve
college readiness and completion] lies entirely in the schools
or in colleges and universities. The wisdom resides in our
collaboration -- in getting the people who really understand
the problems on the ground together with those who, from a
little distance, can help them solve those problems."
But the discussions here also made clear just how big a job
remains to be done.
Setting Standards, and Beyond
The task of setting the standards -- which involved more
than two years' worth of work by the school officers' group,
the National Governors Association, and many others --
has been a big job, but it has been done largely without
the involvement of higher education. At Friday's meeting,
Susan Pimentel, a senior consultant for the nonprofit
education reform group Achieve, who helped write the
common core's English language arts standards, described
the surveys of postsecondary faculty members that helped
frame the guidelines and the involvement of numerous college
professors on the work groups that helped draft the standards.
And while some college leaders have balked that
postsecondary educators were involved too late in the process,
the American Council on Education helped convenepanels
of experts (based on advice from the Modern Language
Association and the Conference Board of the Mathematical
Sciences) to assess the standards.
If higher education's role in crafting the standards was
minimal, it is likely to be much larger, on many fronts, in
bringing the guidelines to life and making them meaningful.
While the groups describe the standards as designed to "define
the knowledge and skills students should have within their
K-12 education careers so that they will graduate high school
able to succeed in entry-level, credit-bearing academic college
courses and in work force training programs," they do not set
specific levels of proficiency that students are expected to have.
That will come only with the development of assessments
that are tied to the standards; three coalitions of states and
nonprofit groups are reportedly planning to develop tests that
would measure students' proficiency in achieving the core
standards.
Published by: philosophyandrew
Higher education officials have a clear stake in how those
assessments are developed, but the big job for college leaders
will then be to decide whether and how to use those
tests in admissions and placement into public colleges, said
Lingenfelter of the SHEEO group. "For that to happen,
the standards and assessments are going to have to be
organizationally understood and accepted" by public college
administrators and faculty members, he said.
Kevin Reilly, president of the University of Wisconsin system,
noted that Wisconsin is among 31 states that has joined the
Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, one of three that
has applied to the federal government's Race to the Top
program for funds to build an assessment aligned to the
common core.
The 15 campuses in the Wisconsin system "don't have common
placement practices," Reilly said, but the system's eventual
goal is to set a single, common level of proficiency that
students would need to achieve to know that they could avoid
developmental courses and begin college-level work at any of
its campuses (from the highly selective flagship at Madison
to more accessible institutions like Whitewater and Superior).
"The goal would be to help drive more sensible messages about
what you need to do to attend any of our campuses," Reilly
said.
Those involved in shaping the common core standards
acknowledge that those sorts of discussions could be vexing for
many colleges, given the belief among many faculty members
that their own colleges should demand more of students.
"When college faculty are asked to say what they think is
important [for students in general to know and be able to
do], they're good at listing 12 things," said Jason Zimba, co-
founder of Student Achievement Partners and a member of the
panel that drafted the common core math standards. But when
asked about students should be required to know at their own
institutions, Zimba said, "through admissions standards," they
expect a lot more.
The second major task ahead for postsecondary institutions
will fall to their education schools. "We're going to have to
change the way we prepare teachers and school leaders," said
Lingenfelter.
Wilhoit was more pointed. "Do we have a work force in place,
and a structure to support those teachers and school leaders, to
get children to the levels we now say we’re expecting of them?
The answer right now is dramatically No," he said.
Changing that situation will require education schools and
their professors to work with K-12 leaders in their states to
rework their teacher training curriculums and their programs
for teachers once they're embedded in schools. Much of the
work, both on aligning the high school exit and college entry/
placement requirements with the core standards and on better
preparing teachers to carry them out, will take place between
K-12 and higher education leaders within individual states, but
the national organizations hope that their own collaboration
can point the way.
Jack Warner, executive director of the South Dakota Board of
Regents and incoming chair of the SHEEO group, said it and
the school officers' group expect to set up two work groups to
10
July 19th, 2010
discuss aligning common core assessments with admissions
and placement requirements, and educational preparation of
teachers and school administrators, to see if they can "model
the way" for leaders in individual states.
"The core standards open the door to more and more effective
joint discussion between K-12 and higher education, but it's a
question of seizing that opportunity," Warner said.
It won't be easy, several state leaders said. Robert L.
King, president of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary
Education, warned that if past practice is any guide, college
and high school leaders should expect legislators in their
states to try to "dumb down" the standards and lower cutoff
scores if students start failing. "While everyone in this room is
persuaded [about the wisdom of the common core standards
and the need to raise educational attainment], we should be
worried about parents coming back on our state legislatures,"
King said.
"We would be foolish when we leave this room to
underestimate the resistance [in the public] to the idea that
more and more of our students need to go on and get a degree,"
said Reilly of the University of Wisconsin system.
Vacancy #: S_10_2186 Job Title: Web Editor Position #:
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The Future of Advanced
Placement
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/ap
July 19th, 2010
WASHINGTON -- The future of Advanced Placement is
changing, and the College Board is taking steps to ensure
that AP classes more accurately reflect colleges' first-year
curriculums and better prepare high school students to
succeed in them and in further college work.
At the AP Annual Conference last weekend, College Board
Vice President Trevor Packer, who is responsible for the AP
program, talked to an audience of about 50 school officials
about AP and about impending changes to the program.
Among Packer’s main concerns was that some colleges and
universities are becoming too strict in their policies about
granting credit for AP exams. This has become the case
particularly among selective institutions.
“Further credit and placement policy erosion will negatively
impact student participation in AP,” he said. “They need some
incentive if they’re going to prioritize; they need to know that
this stuff counts for higher education.”
Published by: philosophyandrew
Research has shown that AP studentsperform better and are
more likely to graduate on time than "matched peers" who
don’t have AP credit but who are otherwise academically
equal. “There’s something about time management, work
ethic, thinking skills that AP students learn,” Packer said.
However, trends among colleges and universities now show
that while 30 to 40 percent of colleges have made their
policies more stringent (not accepting a 3 for college credit,
for example) because of the volume of students over the last
10 years, the other half has more recently made them more
lenient to avoid losing students to peer institutions.
As a result, the College Board intends to adopt a new
communications strategy to foster understanding between AP
teachers and college officials, and to help those in higher
education understand how AP can be beneficial. Packer
said that when asked, many university administrators are
simply unaware of what is being taught in AP courses. He
also suggested establishing credit policy colloquiums to help
administrators understand what each score means and how it
compares with what a student would have learned in a college
course.
“We want the decisions to be based on what AP is, so they can
really find out what works for their institution,” he said.
Another issue Packer emphasized was the dynamic between
breadth and depth in high school AP courses. Asked a series of
questions via clicker devices, more than half of the attendees
said they agree or strongly agree that AP courses require
teachers to sacrifice depth to breadth to cover all the content
before the exam. Packer sees this as a problematic area, and
hopes to “enhance AP’s position as the capstone high school
experience by articulating standards that merge updated
college level content with 21st-century skills.”
“We can produce a stronger outcome in higher education than
AP currently produces if we can structure AP courses around
these skills that really are important in higher education,” he
said.
The general idea, supported by much of the audience, was
to move the AP curriculum away from learning facts and in
the direction of learning themes. “What colleges really want
and need are for students to come in and identify historical
constructs or write an effective essay,” Packer said. “But if
you’re spending all your time memorizing content, you’re not
going to develop those fundamental skills.”
However, some members of the audience -- which included
a mix of AP teachers, non-AP teachers, school administrators
or AP coordinators -- spoke about the benefits of college-level
instruction in a high school setting. Some teachers said that
because of the smaller classes and more frequent meetings,
the high-school courses are more rigorous and in-depth than
those in college. They also mentioned that AP teachers may
be better equipped than some college professors to engage
with the students because they have been trained to work
with smaller groups of students undergoing challenges specific
to high school. Nonetheless, the teachers welcomed Packer's
ideas to improve the AP experience and to ensure that what
they are teaching corresponds as closely as possible with a
college curriculum.
11
July 19th, 2010
Packer unveiled a schedule for redesigning most AP courses
within the next four years to ensure that students can develop
the skills necessary to truly understand the subject and to
gain all the knowledge that they would in a freshman course.
New French, German and world history courses will be
introduced at the beginning of the 2011 school year; biology,
U.S. history, Spanish literature, and European history in 2012;
and chemistry, physics 1, physics 2, and Spanish language
in 2013. Art history, English language, and English literature
are also slated for changes within the next few years to
include more measurements of student writing and revision
throughout the school year.
At the conference, Packer also discussed the availability and
quality of professional development for AP teachers, which is
lacking. Many teachers don’t have access to training beyond
the required one-week course before they begin teaching AP,
in part because their schools don’t set aside money for this
purpose. Packer said that AP teachers need at least 20 more
hours of training per year.
He introduced an idea College Board has in the works in
which teachers download modules online throughout the year
related to their subject and specific topics they’re covering. The
modules will include “tools for a teacher to design, deliver,
assess and adjust instruction.” Another online innovation
Packer suggested was a formative assessment in which
teachers can determine which areas of knowledge students
are particularly struggling with and refocus their attention on
these stumbling blocks. Audience members were enthusiastic
about both of these ideas.
Packer also mentioned the need to modernize the AP
program by making testing dates flexible, delivering scores
earlier, eliminating tape-recorder dependencies, and enabling
computer-based testing.
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Job Description The Assistant Registrar for Academic
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Searching for Cash Overseas
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/07/19/intl
July 19th, 2010
NEW YORK -- What do you do, asked a fund raiser in the
audience, when a prospective donor from Asia asks how much
he has to give to get an honorary degree?
From a scan of the room here at the Council for Advancement
and Support of Education, it appeared that some were
horrified that the question was asked and others were unfazed.
(Not coincidentally, the audience was a mix of those who
Published by: philosophyandrew
already have ambitious fund raising goals abroad and those
hoping to start them.)
One of the panelists -- Scott Nichols, vice president of
development and alumni relations of Boston University --
said he wouldn't be worried about such a question at all. He
noted that many American colleges and universities honor
philanthropy with honorary degrees. While potential donors
from outside the United States may ask the question with
a direct approach that might put some off, he said that he
wouldn't have a problem answering with a number, provided
that an institution has such a number.
But Nichols then offered a recent example of a question he
had received on which he couldn't be so accommodating. A
Middle Easterner living in Europe, someone on BU's prospect
list, sent an aide to see him. The question: In return for a gift
of a certain size, "how many admissions slots will be allowed?"
Nichols said that he had to respond that "gee, it doesn't work
that way here," but said that such direct questions shouldn't
make anyone write off a donor. "The quid pro quo is a way
to get inside their head" and to learn more about a would-be
donor, he said.
At the session here, Nichols and others urged colleges to either
start or expand international fund raising efforts. They told
stories about landing seven-figure gifts from donors who had
never been approached before and of the ability to bring in
new money at a time when many American donors are feeling
pinched by the economic downturn. “Get out of New York City
real estate depression mode," Nichols said.
He told a story about a recent $25 million pledge from the
Middle East. Its origins, he said, were in a cold call that a
development officer was making to every CEO or equivalent
in the region with a BU connection. The first response to the
cold call was, "Where have you been all these years?" and the
university found out that this individual had sent two children
to the university and cared deeply about it and despite serious
wealth, had never been approached. Thirteen months after the
cold call, the pledge was made.
"We are talking diamond mining here, not coal mining," he
said.
But how to mine? And where to mine?
One general theme was that international fund raising needs
to be organized, and can't be left to the individual connections
of various campus divisions. Steve Suda, managing director
of international fund raising at Stanford University, said his
office was created shortly after an incident in Japan in 1990.
A Stanford dean was at the offices of a major corporation to
make a proposal and, in the hallway, ran into another Stanford
dean, there to make another proposal to the same company. A
senior official saw the two meet by accident and said that "until
the left hand at Stanford knows what the right hand is doing,
no more proposals from Stanford."
Now, Suda said, he helps organize such trips to Japan and
elsewhere, and there is an overall plan. He said that his
division has goals both for Stanford's overall fund raising
agenda, and for specific international-related objectives. The
panelists from larger universities with international fund-
raising ambitions described having four or more people
12
July 19th, 2010
focused on non-U.S. donors full time and many more spending
some of their time on these prospects.
Suda and other panelists also said it was important for those
with international fund raising experience to be involved in
working with prospects that don't fit neatly in an international-
domestic dichotomy. Companies that are based in the United
States but have major interests abroad might be an example.
Another might be foreign companies with major American
operations. He also noted that many of his biggest gifts have
come from individuals with family members both in and
outside the United States.
Jerry May, vice president for development at the University
of Michigan, said that his institution has made a commitment
to an annual major event in China. The first was led by the
university's president, and the provost and vice presidents
have led subsequent trips. It's important, he said, for alumni
and other potential donors to see that a university is
committed to building relationships over a long term. Along
those lines, Michigan brings 25 executives from China to Ann
Arbor for two weeks every year.
May was among many at the session who said that they
would be adding fund raising staff focused on international
development and hiring was clearly on the minds of many
here. A general consensus from the discussion was that
colleges are best off hiring outstanding fund raisers, and
teaching them the culture of the counties they will be working
in, rather than trying to hire area specialists who know a
country or region, but not fund raising. For those who haven't
done much abroad yet, the general advice was to select a city
or two -- based on alumni, foreign students (whose parents
could be good donors), faculty research interests and various
connections between your home campus and the rest of the
world.
Language should not be a barrier. Nichols said that while he
speaks some of several languages, he prefers to use a translator
so he's sure to catch the nuances of anyone he is talking to.
Suda of Stanford agreed, and said he doesn't try to teach those
from Stanford who accompany him the local language. But he
said that he spends time with all delegation members on the
names of everyone they will be seeing. These individuals are
tolerant of Americans who don't speak their languages "but
you can't mangle a name."
The faculty role in international fund raising was the subject
of much discussion. Several said that their institutions first
started raising money abroad at the request of faculty
members with connections in various countries, and several
described bringing faculty members on foreign trips, having
them translate and make introductions, and so forth. Several
credited professors with making the difference in obtaining big
gifts.
But Nichols said that he worries about relying too much
on faculty members when actually reaching out to potential
donors. He said that one thing a delegation from the United
State is going to be asked is, "What are your institutional
priorities? And how does the faculty member respond?.... You
can be there in Korea and the professor is saying 'Gee the work
I'm doing in Korean studies is important,' but you are thinking
'I really need to raise money for scholarships.' " He said it
Published by: philosophyandrew
was key for senior fund raisers to be dealing with "the top of
the academic food chain," so that it's clear the money is going
to the best possible use. "You need to pick your sherpas very
carefully."
And good guidance is also needed on ethics issues. Speakers
noted that the philanthropic traditions outside the United
States vary widely. Donors may not receive the equivalent tax
deductions associated with big gifts in the United States and
may expect something tangible in return. Foreign donors may
be governments, not individuals, and that raises issues.
"Governments have an agenda, and it's not always
philanthropic," Suda said. He described one gift from a
government, which was followed with many faxes. "We would
like a 10,000 square foot office for the director" of the
program, said one fax. "We would like a [specific] professor" in
the program, said another. While Stanford didn't meet those
demands, the back and forth showed the "cultural nuance"
involved in getting gifts from foreign governments.
Then there is tradition. Nichols described the last part of the
process in which Saudi royalty made a seven-figure gift. It
was the "thank you" visit, for which BU sent an 11-member
delegation, including several Jewish professors, something
several people at the university thought was an important
symbol at a time of reaching out to the Saudis. The Saudis had
no problem with the Jewish academics who were there. The
Boston delegation offered a token of appreciation -- with a gift
box including a book and a tie.
A Saudi aide went to a back room, and emerged with 11
boxes. When the members of the BU delegation opened their
boxes, they each had a new Rolex, with the Saudi king's name
inscribed on it. After some quick thinking, the Boston group
decided that they could keep their new watches, but that
individuals wanting to keep them would have to declare them
and pay any duty themselves when going through customs.
(They all opted to keep the watches.)
Gift-giving abroad is not what it is in American philanthropy,
and colleges in the U.S. need to be aware, Nichols said. These
days when he travels for fund raising abroad, he takes two
suitcases, typically. One is for gifts he's bringing.
Director of Development #1072 Vacancy #: A_10_2144 Job
Title: Director of Development Position #: 1072 Grade: O
Location: Central ...
Waves of Service CoordinatorAs the Waves of Service
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13
July 19th, 2010
O! How Time Hath Ravaged My
Beautiful Etc.
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/
blogs/the_education_of_oronte_churm/
o_how_time_hath_ravaged_my_beautiful_etc
July 19th, 2010
By Oronte July 19, 2010 2:24 am
Buceadores del ejército de los Estados Unidos, Isla Grande,
República de Panamá, el día de Navidad, 1985. I’m the
beautiful one.
(Now) chaplain Captain Floro, subject of an interview here
at the blog, is second from left. Judging by our pose, ZZ Top
was popular on MTV. Courtesy of Mark Wilson, friend, diver,
surfer, father, and (now) hyperbaric chamber operator.
Facebook photos are only one of several resurfacings of the
past in recent days. As I said a couple of posts ago, an old friend
contacted me unexpectedly, which led me to a dear former
roommate. Mark, another former roommate, posted this and
other photos I didn’t know he had.
Then, going through dampish boxes in the basement, I found
reports I wrote at age 13 for my Boy Scout hiking merit badge:
Seventy miles in two weeks in the steam and heat of the
land between the rivers, including one 20-mile death slog. I
wrote the reports by hand on a large notepad I can no longer
explain (“Mach II, for all your aviation insurance needs”),
each with the name of the hike, date, time, destination, route,
distance, purpose, permissions needed, items to be carried,
sources of water, a slogan (“Quitters never win; winners never
quit”), hand-drawn map of the route, and “story” of the march.
(“Finally 13th Street ran out. We made a left, and a block later
[the scoutmaster] showed us the ‘hanging tree,’ on which a
man was hung because of a riot.”) This was probably the first
writing I did on the topic of my novel.
Stranger still: As I was working in the library last summer
on my nonfiction book—a brief history of the town where my
novel is set—I met an elderly woman from there who was very
sweet until she discovered what I was up to. She told me then
tartly, “None of that should be dredged up.” And attached
to the front of my merit badge reports is a handwritten note
from her father, a local historian and scout leader who was old
enough to have driven boy scouts in his flivver up to see the
Galloping Ghost play ball at Illinois. He awarded my writing
first place that year and wrote, “This is the best I have had in
all my hikes since 1965.”
How to account for these synchronicities? Maybe it’s an effect
of my disturbing our lives’ detritus and repairing, painting and
wallpapering our old house. My cussing alone could generate
Published by: philosophyandrew
a magnetosphere capable of disorienting animals and bending
time. In fact, a confused field mouse has been cavorting in our
cabinets, chewing labels off the olive oil and balsamic bottles,
and dropping excreta like blackened wild rice. This sometimes
happens in fall and spring, when the cold and wet bring them
inside, but never summer. Clearly we can’t live with a mouse in
our kitchen, so I had to do something I don’t like to do—move
the family into a tent in the backyard until the mouse decides
to leave.
I know, Dr. Trinkle, you’re a man of science, and so am I. There
are rational explanations for all this weirdness: I blog, so an
old roommate reads of how another old roommate contacted
me, and he posts his pictures. There are only 10,000 residents
in that town where I was doing my research, so the odds were
not bad I’d meet someone related to someone. And the mouse
loves Saigon cinnamon and curry powder. See?
But top this: Earlier this month I was lying on the couch with
our cat Plop on my chest, reading Werner Herzog’s published
journal, Conquest of the Useless: Reflections from the Making
of Fitzcarraldo, just out in paper. It’s a strange, haunting
book by a strange, driven filmmaker with a psychotic star and
impossible self-imposed shooting conditions, and I’d gotten to
the part where Herzog is reflecting on the myths of seduction
and nightmares surrounding the real pink dolphins of the
Amazon basin, where he was filming.
As I was reading that entry I heard a soft little bump-scrape
several times in a row. In a house with two young boys, two
young cats, and two aging dogs, odd repetitive noises can only
mean trouble. I peered around the living room. At first I saw
only our other cat, Bitey, but she wasn’t eating Legos like usual;
she was looking up. I lay still and watched. A mylar balloon in
the shape and color of a pink dolphin sank down the wall. I
was about to throttle up into a full-bore Klaus Kinski fit when
I remembered Wolfie had asked me to buy the balloon, for
no reason other than he liked it, for Mrs. Churm for Mother’s
Day. It had floated up to the ceiling after the celebration and
been concealed for six weeks behind a segmented arch ten feet
overhead.
You have to admit that’s a little weird. How many times do you
hear of cats named Plop and Bitey?
We were globalists at a tender
age!
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/globalhighered/
we_were_globalists_at_a_tender_age
July 19th, 2010
By Kris Olds July 18, 2010 11:15 pm
As is evident in the end note to my most recent entry (‘Are
we witnessing the denationalization of the higher education
media?’), I acknowledged the insightful comments of one of
my ‘retired’ colleagues, the venerable (in the best sense of the
term) Yi-Fu Tuan. Yi-Fu (pictured below) is always ready to
launch a witty or illuminating commentary, no matter what the
topic. In this case he had some thoughts about the notion of a
‘world view’; a term coincidentally used for the new weblog The
World View (on Inside Higher Ed), and remarkably similar in
tone to WorldWise (on the Chronicle of Higher Education).
14
July 19th, 2010
What follows is Yi-Fu’s initial response to my entry, some
additional text (the Preface) from a book he is finishing that
is tentatively called Making Sense of Life and World: A
Cosmopolitan Humanist Geography, and then some of my
own reflections.
~~~~~~~~~
Dear Kris,
Thanks for the article on globalized education. Strange to
think that I, an undernourished child in a one-room school
[in China], had a global education. The years were 1938-1941.
In this elementary school, we were taught to read and write,
and we were taught to do so through stories. Some of them
clearly instilled virtues typical of China, such as hard work
and filial piety. But we also read stories drawn from Western
sources--for example, the apple that fell on Newton, the kite
that Benjamin Franklin flew, and the absent-mindedness of
young James Watts, who boiled his mother's watch instead
of the egg. Newton's apple allowed our teacher to introduce
gravity and the solar system; Franklin's kite opened up the
topic of electricity. But of greater importance to us children
was that the stories encouraged unconventional thinking and
behavior: singed into our young brain was the idea that it
might be better to daydream under an apple tree than grind out
additions and subtractions in school; that doing science was
worth risking electrocution in a storm. As for boiling mother's
watch in a fit of absent-mindedness, what's wrong with that if
the mind of young Watts was occupied with the steam engine?
The funny thing was that though I recognized the names --
Newton, Franklin, Watts -- to be foreign, I never thought
the exploits of these luminaries to be irrelevant to my own
ambition. I assumed, as did my school mates, that we were
inheritors of world culture. We were globalists at a tender age!
Yi-Fu
~~~~~~~~~
Text from the preface to Yi-Fu Tuan's Making Sense of
Life and World: A Cosmopolitan Humanist Geography
(forthcoming)
Thinking about life and world is what one does in a reflective
mood. "Here I am, already a third, a half, or three-quarters
way through the passage of life, what have I learned? Above all,
what have I learned that matters to me, not as a specialist or
professional, but as the sort of person I am?" The mood soon
passes. Society does not encourage it. Moreover, when I do
make an effort to pin down my world-view, it turns out to be
Published by: philosophyandrew
very elusive. What I come up with is likely to be a kaleidoscope
of worn images and cliches.
Can I--can we--do better? I believe we can by giving a certain
body to world-view. To do so, I propose that we introduce a
new coinage "cosmopolitan humanist geography." It, as I shall
show, has the advantage of being more concrete and specific.
Consider the three parts of that coinage. First, cosmopolitan
or cosmos. Like the word "world" in world-view, it tells of
the scope of the project. Second, humanist or humanism.
It tells of the materials--the sources--it draws on, which
are histories, philosophical apercus, personal experience,
rather than technical knowledge. Third, geography, a field
of study that is heavily factual and furthest from the
abstractions of philosophy and theoretical science. Moreover,
unlike philosophy or even world-view, geography seldom
demands an overarching theme--one master narrative. Rather
it consists of congeries of related topics: in physical geography
these include climate, land forms, and soils; and in human
geography, population, settlements, and economic activities.
And what might be the topics of cosmopolitan humanist
geography? No standard list and certainly no standard
approach can exist, for cosmopolitan humanist geography
is a personal statement, an individual's understanding and
appreciation of life and world.
Nevertheless, certain building blocks seem to me essential.
What, after all, can a cosmopolitan humanist geography be
without some consideration of nature and human nature,
society, culture, morality, religion, and human destiny? I
prefer the words "building blocks" to topics because "building
blocks," unlike topics, hint at an intended edifice. So, then,
there is to be an edifice? And won't edifice be another word--
another metaphor--for a coherent world-view or philosophy?
It would, but the word "geography" checks a too ardent
striving for coherence, which, in my view is unattainable. Still,
although an achieved edifice may be out of reach, having one
as a distant goal can provide one with the motivation and the
energy to begin and, more importantly, to persevere in the
construction of a cosmopolitan humanist geography.
Below [in the book] is a sample of my building blocks. They are
made up of my own thoughts and experiences as well as those
of other people that I have collected over the years. I like to
think that visitors strolling through the construction yard will
pause at a site here and there to savor its merit and perhaps
even conclude that the incompletion, like an armless Venus de
Milo, offers its own kind of reward. Above all, I hope that my
effort will stimulate others to make similar efforts. Living in a
house that we have built ourselves is highly satisfying. Living
in a cosmopolitan humanist geography of our own making
will surely afford the same sort of satisfaction. Rather than
foggy images, specific images and articulated ideas answer the
question "What is my world-view? How do I see life and world?
What truly matters to me?"
Yi-Fu Tuan
~~~~~~~
Now Yi-Fu’s comments above, and those in his preface, flag
some interesting issues for consideration when considering
the globalization of higher education and research. These
include what level(s) of abstraction to work with and prioritize.
15
July 19th, 2010
Do we hove into view the (as he calls it) technical forms of
knowledge, statecraft, and regulation that are undoubtedly
driving many of the changes we see in this sphere/sector?
Or do we, and this would be his preference, seek out and
illuminate situated viewpoints such as those of local and
foreign students, and foreign faculty, at Texas A&M’s Qatar
campus, as they work through challenging topics in particular
courses, at particular times.
This a similar point raised by The Economist in a gentle
critique of Ben Wildavsky’s informative new book The Great
Brain Race: How Global Universities Are Reshaping the
World(Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2010):
"This is a fascinating story. But Mr Wildavsky, a former
education reporter who now works for both the Kauffman
Foundation and the Brookings Institution, is too earnest
a writer to make the best of it. He wastes too much ink
summarising research papers and quoting “experts” uttering
banalities. And he fails to point out the humour of sabbatical
man jet-setting hither and thither to discuss such staples
of modern academic life as poverty and inequality. Mr
Wildavsky should spend less time with his fellow think-
tankers (who are mesmerised by the idea of a global
knowledge economy) and more talking to students, who
experience the disadvantages as well as the advantages of the
new cult of globalisation at first hand."
Yet we all, as did Wildavsky, need to make decisions about
what to focus on, what to integrate, what to exclude, and so
on, as we attempt to make sense of the globalization of higher
education and research. I, for one, learn from the situated
views of students and faculty as they grapple with the amalgam
of forces reshaping higher education and research practices,
and from the think tank views of Wildavsky, and from the
experiential reflections of cosmopolitan humanists like Tuan,
so long as their respective views are compared within the
broader context of competing 'modes of knowing'.
The bigger question, to me, though, is absence versus
presence. Who is not producing important discourses about
the globalization of higher education and research? Or if
they are producing them, why are they not being circulated,
consumed, and debated at broader scales and more diverse
fora? What modes of knowing are absent or limited, why is
the case, and what can/should be done to bring them out into
view so they too can be reviewed by The Economist, by higher
education media outlets, and by faculty members, staff and
students?
Higher education and research are being globalized, to be
sure. In this context we need to think about absence as well
as presence, for there are many more ‘dear colleagues’ on
sidewalks, in think tanks, in branch campuses in the Gulf, in
NGOs, in universities on Java in Indonesia, in administrative
offices in Bascom Hall, etc., etc., whose voices are not being
heard. Yet we can all benefit when we pause, engage with,
and subsequently reflect about what more of our informed
colleagues are learning and saying.
Lost Illusions
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/
confessions_of_a_community_college_dean/lost_illusions
Published by: philosophyandrew
July 19th, 2010
I’m working with a colleague who’s going through the shock
that hits every new dean the first time she has to deal with
someone being a colossal jerk.
It brought back memories.
In a perfect world, people who move into administration have
established themselves as credible, hardworking, intelligent
people in their earlier roles. (Admittedly, this doesn’t always
happen, but bear with me.) They’ve earned respect by being
conscientious and productive, and at some level they expect
that others will be conscientious and productive, too. And most
of the time, that’s mostly true.
But sooner or later, someone who thinks of the new dean as
goodhearted but basically irrelevant will try to take advantage
of her good nature. And the new dean will discover that appeals
to the better angels of one’s nature don’t always work.
My colleague, bless her, is having trouble believing that the
high road won’t prevail. She’s a dedicated traveler of it, and
has always succeeded with it. But she has new responsibilities
now, and some of the people for whom she’s responsible
simply don’t share her high-mindedness. Worse, they read it
as exploitable naivete, which it can be. So she’s finding herself
painted into a corner in which her options are increasingly
distasteful.
I went through the same thing. It’s a painful process.
In a way, it’s a variation on the good student who becomes a
teacher, only to discover that she has no idea how students
without her own gifts actually learn. Suddenly, some of the
teacherly behaviors that had previously seemed inexplicable
make sense. As a student, she found them redundant or
pedantic, but as a teacher she finds that not all students are
just younger versions of her.
In this case, someone who has been blessed with a great work
ethic and the respect of her erstwhile colleagues has inherited
a turkey farm. She’s such a non-turkey herself that she doesn’t
quite know what to do.
Overheated union rhetoric notwithstanding, many
administrators take these jobs because we honestly want to
help the institutions run better. We try to be fair, and we work
hard to walk the walk. If that’s your outlook, then being pushed
into a situation in which you have to be the bad guy can be
really draining. You don’t want to do it, you try not to do it,
but you finally run out of excuses. Invariably, the first time you
actually play the heavy, you get monstrous pushback. You get
accused of procedural irregularities, of discrimination against
whatever category the person can claim, and of a personal
vendetta. The hurtfulness of the accusations is real, even if the
content isn’t. But you learn, slowly, not to take it personally,
and to let the process play itself out. You learn how to interpret
certain behaviors. Cornered animals attack. It’s what they do.
If you’re lucky, you’re able (both personally and
organizationally) to compartmentalize, and not to let the
poisons you have to use in one area seep into others. You learn
not to jump to extremes, or to react to your lost illusions by
swinging too far in the other direction. In a sense, you cherish
the illusions all the more out of recognition of their painful
fragility.
But once you’ve gone through it, you can’t un-know it.
My colleague will make her peace with it; she’s bright and
dedicated, and she’s in the right. But it’s taking a toll on her, in
16
July 19th, 2010
much the same way it did on me years ago. It just comes with
the territory.
The Disappearing College
Catalog
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/university_of_venus/
the_disappearing_college_catalog
July 19th, 2010
By Heather Alderfer July 18, 2010 9:49 pm
I threw a stack of college catalogs in the recycling bin last
week. It was a symbolic as well as a practical move, a step
toward the triumph of the electronic over the printed. Will
today’s students really come to the Registrar’s Office to browse
for cross-campus classes? Or will they find a course schedule
online with a few key search terms? I’m betting on the latter.
The dilemma of whether to publish and distribute a printed
catalog, which after a brief time of usefulness, lingers in
drawers of faculty members and administrators, is one many
colleges have had. The cost of printing thousands of catalog
copies is an easy line item to redline in a budget and the
environmental benefit cannot be ignored.
The decision to stop publishing a hard-copy catalog is
surprisingly emotional in the educational community. The
dilemma is a quintessential example of the print vs. digital
debate that libraries face. When I asked my sister, a college
sophomore, if her school had given her a catalog, her response
was: "yeah, and it was thick and I never looked at it."
This is not what Registrars want to hear. We hope students
understand that when they enroll, the catalog becomes their
field guide to the institution, providing a comprehensive (if
lengthy) compendium of the academic regulations and course
descriptions, and also a general introduction to student life.
At the same time, I see how the catalog can be viewed as an
outdated source of information that is readily available on the
college web site.
Questioning the value of the printed catalog brings up a range
of emotions. As a student, I remember the excitement each
semester when the upcoming course book showed up in my
mailbox. I would hurry home and read through the exotic new
courses, and circle more than I could ever enroll in. Faculty
members also pay close attention to the catalog, and many
have described the pleasure they get from reading about their
colleagues’ courses and programs. It is a unifying artifact - this
is our college, it says, in a neatly bound volume.
But the college experience can't be simply summed up between
two covers. The printed catalog lacks the intertextuality of
hyperlinks, of seeing the relationship of courses to each
Published by: philosophyandrew
other, of being able to click on an instructor’s name and
quickly find their bio and the other courses they are teaching.
Students today are fluent in browsing and searching electronic
documents. I often find myself pulling up a PDF version on
a web browser and using the “find” function when it may be
just as fast to grab a catalog on my desk and flip to the course
description I am looking for. MIT’s online catalog provides
both an intuitive and visually pleasing web version with clear
instructions on how to get a printed copy.
There will always be those who prefer, and enjoy, reading the
catalog in print, savoring the tactile pleasure of the book in
printed form. One solution may be to print on demand, so
those who do want a catalog can get one and enjoy the feel in
their hands of a newly published “book” hot off the press.
What is your institution considering? What will you miss about
a printed catalog, and what unexpected benefits do you find in
an electronic version?
Pushing Back on 'The Power of
Pull'
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/technology_and_learning/
pushing_back_on_the_power_of_pull
July 19th, 2010
By Joshua Kim July 18, 2010 9:41 pm
I read The Power of Pull: How Small Moves, Smartly Made,
Can Set Big Things in Motion for one reason: "John Seely
Brown." If JSB writes something, I'm buying. If JSB gives a
talk, I'm there (at least virtually). If JSB says to "jump", I'm
saying "how far." You get the picture.
The Power of Pull is one of those books that I'm happy
I read but did not enjoy reading all that much. What is
most instructive about The Power of Pull is that the book
demonstrates how good ideas and clear thinking are necessary
but not sufficient to engage us readers. What is missing from
the book is precisely why I bought the book, the authors.
The great ideas are filtered through a sort of omnipresent
consultant speak, homo consultilis, instead of through the
voice of any recognizable homo sapien. I know for a fact that
the all 3 authors lead fascinating lives, but one would never
know it from reading Pull.
Educators need to keep this lesson in mind. When we teach,
we need to connect our disciplines to stories, and our stories
to our students and ourselves. Dan Ariely does this masterfully
in his latest book, The Upside of Irrationality, telling the story
of his recovery from a horrific accident to help us understand
the science of behavioral economics.
It is shame that the Pull authors allowed themselves to slip into
consultant speak, as the ideas and lessons from Pull are worth
pondering. The big argument of Pull is that a combination
of globalization and digital technologies has fundamentally
changed the rules of economics and employment, a big
shift in which companies and institutions must draw ideas
and people from the "edge" and leverage their talents to
change the practices of the "core." People who will succeed
in the uncertainty and turmoil of the digital economy will
be those who can authentically follow their passions, connect
with other passionate individuals, and re-skill themselves to
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July 19th, 2010
compete and add-value in a globalized economy. Companies
can no longer either create or forecast demand (push), but
rather must offer a compelling product or service that "pulls"
potential employees, partners, and customers in to mutually
beneficial relationships.
I particularly like what Pull has to say about education:
"It's quickly dawning on us instead that our education was at
best a thin foundation that needs to be continually refreshed
in order for us to stay competitive". (page 12)
"Until relatively recently, most of us believed we had to invest
considerable time and effort early in our lives navigation an
educational system designed to transfer stocks of knowledge
to us. As a reward for our diligence and persistence in school,
we believed, these stocks of knowledge would serve us well
throughout our lives". (page 52)
"We have to be willing to risk looking like we don't know the
answer, or maybe the question. We've got to wean ourselves
from the over dependence on expertise we've labored so hard
to accumulate. To paraphrase Albert Einstein, we must avoid
letting our education interfere with our learning". (page 117).
Good stuff. But I can't find much that is really all the new.
A much better book about our economic and job future in
a globalized and digital economy is Sonic Boom,by Gregg
Easterbrook. Seth Godin has written extensively about finding
our tribes and passions at work. Dan Pink's new book, Drive,
is all about how intrinsic motivators always trump extrinsic
ones in determining performance at work. Matt Ridley, in The
Rational Optimist, explains how a globalized world organized
around trade and open markets will mean greater prosperity
for all of us. (You should really check out Ridley's TED
Talk - "When Ideas Have Sex." And The New American
Workplace provides in-depth case studies of companies that
are able remain competitive through a results only workplace
environment (ROWE) that allows creative people on the edge
to be nurtured and thrive.
JSB - I hope your next book includes more of JSB.
What are you reading?
Student Unrest on African
Campuses
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/the_world_view/
student_unrest_on_african_campuses
July 19th, 2010
By Goolam Mohamedbhai July 18, 2010 8:57 pm
In May 2010 the University of Nairobi in Kenya closed
down indefinitely after violent unrest and looting in the
streets by students over disputed student elections. The
disturbances were allegedly caused by external interference
of local politicians in the students’ elections. A year earlier,
in March 2009, it was Kenyatta University, also in Nairobi,
which closed down after students’ protest over the set deadline
for examination registration. The incidents resulted in one
student dead and serious destruction to university property.
Student unrest and rioting, leading to closure of several
campuses, also occurred in Kenya during 2007/2008 in the
wake of the disputed presidential elections.
Published by: philosophyandrew
Kenya is but one of the many African countries that have had to
deal with university student unrest. South Africa and Nigeria,
among others, have also had their fair share in recent years.
Student unrest is of course not a new phenomenon in Africa;
it goes back to the late 1960’s and 1970’s, at the time when
universities were being established following independence
from Europe. But the campus environment today is very
different from that a few decades ago.
First, the student numbers are far greater. Previously an
African university would have a couple of thousand of
students; now most universities have tens of thousands
of students, so the disturbances have more serious
consequences. Second, the existing campus infrastructures,
including student residences, lecture halls, libraries, etc., have
not generally expanded to cope with the increasing student
population, leading to greater frustrations and complaints
from students. Third, the student profiles have changed.
Previously universities would admit a few students from the
more socially advantaged urban population. Now, with efforts
to increase access to higher education, universities admit a
greater mix of students from different social and ethnic strata,
as well as from the rural areas, thus increasing the possibilities
of tensions among students. Fourth, a significant number
of students now have to pay tuition fees, so they are more
demanding and want their money’s worth. Fifth,
technology, in particular mobile telephony, has increased the
ease of communication among students, making it possible
to better organise their protest for maximum impact. Finally,
many of the former student leaders, and even faculty, now
occupy influential political positions which they tend to use to
their political advantage.
It is therefore not surprising to continually hear of student
unrest on African campuses. Such unrests of course occur
in other regions of the world as well – in particular Asia
and Latin America, but even Europe. However, the long
term impact of student unrest on Africa is particularly
disturbing. African universities, after years of neglect and
under-funding, are undergoing a major revitalization process
with international support. They can ill afford the set-backs
caused by campus destruction and closures. Africa right now
needs vibrant and dynamic universities producing graduates
and undertaking research to assist in the continent’s much-
needed development drive.
So what can be done? One should first recognise that
universities are a reflection of the social and political society
in which they are located. There are perhaps two major factors
causing student unrest – internal and external, although it
can be argued that one invariably leads to the other. The
internal factors result from poor living conditions, protest over
examinations, tribal or ethnic differences, dissatisfaction with
administration, etc.
Here, African universities can learn from other parts of the
world. Since the mid-1960’s almost all US universities and
colleges appoint a ‘Campus Ombudsman’, a respected external
personality who listens to students’ grievances and attempts to
resolve a problem before it bursts into a major crisis. In the UK,
since 2004, the Government has appointed an ‘Independent
Adjudicator’ to deal with complaints from university students.
Other countries must have tried similar preventive measures
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July 19th, 2010
and these could be emulated in Africa. African universities
need also to review their governance structures to ensure
participation of students in their various decision-making
bodies, and to create appropriate communication channels
between administration and students.
Dealing with the external cause of student unrest, in almost
all cases resulting from political interference, is more complex
as it goes beyond the campus. Here governments must realise
that it is in the long-term interest of their respective country
to have universities that are autonomous with no political
interference, be it at administration or student level, and
they should take appropriate steps in revising the governing
statutes of universities to make this effective.
Once major student unrest has occurred on campus, university
leaders must apply all the skills of conflict resolution and
management to limit the damages and to bring the unrest to
a quick resolution. Several universities in Africa run programs
on conflict resolution to promote peace in their country. They
need to adopt a similar approach to resolve campus crises of
their own institution and of others on the continent.
The topic of student unrest should perhaps be one to be
addressed urgently by the newly created Pan-African Institute
of University Governance in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
Goolam Mohamedbhai is the former Secretary-General of
the Association of African Universities, the former President
of the International Association of Universities and the
former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mauritius. He is
currently a member of the governing Council of the United
Nations University.
The Neighborhood Effect
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/provost_prose/
the_neighborhood_effect
July 19th, 2010
By Herman Berliner July 18, 2010 8:12 pm
All of us have heard that the key bottom line in real estate
is location, location, location. The value of property, be it
residential or commercial, is directly tied to the neighborhood
and what positives or negatives are contained therein. How
good is transportation and access; how good are the schools;
how low is the crime rate; and what is the proximity to major
attractions and critical needs. Do we have a water view or a
strip mall view; it all enters into the equation.
For a college or university, location presently has two major
dimensions. Why presently? The world is clearly changing.
Students especially at the graduate level and especially also
for part-time programs will, in the years ahead, no longer be
attending class the way that we were educated or the way
that we have taught most of our careers. On-campus programs
(once again, especially part-time and graduate programs) will
gravitate to distance learning, most likely the blended variety.
On the undergraduate level, however, the campus experience
remains crucial and the location factors are real assets or real
concerns.
Going back to location - the first aspect of location is
the neighborhood, the college or university is located in.
Is the school in an urban setting, in a suburban setting,
Published by: philosophyandrew
in a rural setting? All have their advantages and all have
their disadvantages and potential students and their families
have feelings and concerns triggered by these settings. We
all know of schools that are located in “college towns”
where the ambiance of the town directly enhances both the
college experience and the attractiveness of the school or
schools located there. Location as an absolute clearly makes a
difference.
But there is another aspect to location and that is relative
location, where you live in relation to the college or university
that you are considering. For a commuter campus, this
aspect is direct and uncomplicated. If you don’t live within a
reasonable commute to the college or university involved, you
will not be attending this school. But what if the college or
university nearby is significantly residential and what if you
want to “go away” to school? What happens then and what
is the impact? This is a much more complicated situation.
Potential students and their families often discount a very
good college or university because it is too close.
Some students and their families feel that if the college or
university is with an easy commute, it really can’t be a going
away experience. And I have even encountered students and
parents over the years who value going away to such a degree
that distance away takes on a higher value than the quality
of education provided. Clearly somewhat flawed judgment.
A good college or university educational and co-curricular
experience is fundamentally different from high school. And
a university that attracts student from a majority of states
and a significant number of different countries provides an
environment that is very different from the neighborhood. It
really is a different world. Overall, location does matter but
distance is mostly a state of mind.
From 60 to 0
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/mama_phd/from_60_to_0
July 19th, 2010
By Susan O'Doherty July 18, 2010 7:29 pm
Last week I wrote about the insanity of life as a freelancer. This
week I’m writing from a cabin in Maine, with no cell signal
and sporadic Internet access. The cabin overlooks a quiet bay,
where I swim in the mornings. You can’t see other houses in
any direction, and when we turn the lights out at night, the
only illumination is from the moon and the stars. In the city,
I am wired and at the computer by 5AM; this morning, I slept
until 9 for the first time in at least ten years.
The cabin belongs to one of my “boogie woogie sisters,” as
we three women who have bonded over rehearsals of “Boogie
Woogie Bugle Boy” call ourselves. We are all up here, along
with another singing friend whom we wish there was a part
for. This is the first vacation I’ve taken without my family since
Ben was born. I miss them, but I feel I’ve entered a different
dimension, on another planet, in which I’m being nourished
in ways I didn’t realize I was hungry for.
We wake up and start talking and laughing, and don’t stop
until we collapse at night. (This is actually a mixed experience,
since I think I cracked a rib the night before we left, and
laughing is painful—and I can’t remember laughing so much,
for so long, since I was in college.) After breakfast, we do
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July 19th, 2010
vocal exercises, and sometimes yoga, then we start singing.
We sing all day—in the car, on walks in the woods, even while
swimming. We only stop when a song reminds one of us of
a story, and then when we’re done laughing we start singing
again. We’re dredging up shared high school favorites—we do
a mean four-part “Going to the Chapel”—and teaching each
other new songs, often prefacing them with, “You have to learn
this—it would be perfect for you!”
Officially, we’re here to polish the boogie woogie song and to
learn a second song in time for our club date in September.
And we’re doing that. But we’re doing so much more. We’ve
already made plans for next year’s “mini Lilith fair.” I really
hope my rib has healed by then, because I plan to be here, and
to do even more laughing.
Other than environmental
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/getting_to_green/
other_than_environmental
July 19th, 2010
By G. Rendell July 18, 2010 3:41 pm
Doing "sustainability work" on campus generally means
trying to change institutional operations so that they're less
destructive of the environment. Or helping students organize
so that they can encourage society to be less destructive of
the environment. Or teaching about technologies which can
help businesses and individuals operate in a way that's less
destructive of the environment.
But sometimes, sustainability isn't about the environment.
Sometimes, it's about society. Or, at the very least, it's about
how environmental limits and constraints, even if seemingly
ignored, come back to bite the (ever-growing) share of society
which isn't at the (ever-shrinking) top of the heap. A rising
tide that lifts all boats is well and good, but society's well being
sometimes depends on making sure the average citizen even
has a boat.
It's in this spirit that I'm encouraged by a 35-minute video that
recently came to my attention. It shows a talk given at TED
back in 2002, by a guy named Bill Strickland. It just might
be the most succinct definition I've seen of social, and thereby
economic, sustainability. So, please, get a cup of coffee or a tall
glass of whatever, find a comfortable chair, and watch it.
You'll be glad you did.
THE BURQA, AND BEING IN
THE WORLD
Source: http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/university_diaries/
the_burqa_and_being_in_the_world
July 19th, 2010
By UD July 16, 2010 11:57 am
Cesare Pavese, the Italian writer who killed himself in 1950,
when he was 41, once wrote: "Every luxury must be paid for,
and everything is a luxury, starting with being in the world."
One of the strange blessings of the burqa - the black robe that
entirely hides a woman, even her face - is the way its presence
among us reminds us of this truth. Existence, we remember
Published by: philosophyandrew
when we pass blank sheaths on our streets, is a luxury - a brief,
beautiful luxury, a flash of light before darkness. We should
not extinguish that light.
The darkness of the burqa, the blindness, constriction,
anonymity, and silence within it, intend to annihilate a
person's existence, to make her invisible, expressionless,
lifeless. Yet far from accomplishing this erasure, the burqa has
done no less than rivet the eyes of Europe. It has become one
of the most expressive artifacts of the modern urban setting.
It has drawn from people and governments such strong
responses that, by overwhelming majorities, one European
nation after another is banning them.
Why is the burqa so riveting? Why is it generating such intense
responses?
I think it has to do with the way it parades total darkness, total
rejection of life - a woman's life. It parades self-nullification
for oneself -- and also for one's daughters, small children just
beginning their lives. And there is no way around it -- however
complex personal motivation on the part of the mother might
be -- and of course there can be no volition on the part of
a seven-year-old -- this sight is, for most free people, and
certainly for most free women, terrible. It is generally terrible
in the totality of darkness it expresses, and it is particularly
terrible in its suppression of the existence of women.
*************************
Western literature features a few symbolically burqa'ed
characters, whose total rejection of life with other human
beings, whose refusal to have an identity, profoundly disturbs
the people around them. Non-beings like Melville's Bartleby
the Scrivener and Kafka's hunger artist draw fascinated
crowds to the spectacle of their dissolved being; their absence
from the human story is so complete as to be ostentatious.
Certainly there's a morbid curiosity about the sort of people
who exhibit the possibility open to any of us to say no to
existence while still maintaining a shadowy silent aspect on
the street. But like the lost-to-public-existence woman in the
burqa, these fictional characters also tend to make the people
around them more aware than they were before of the luxury of
being in the world. By showing us what it looks like when you
stop the world from happening to you, when you elaborately
outfit yourself to arrest the slightest overture from the human
realm, these people sharpen our awareness - an awareness we
usually don't have, because almost everyone we know is letting
the world happen to them - of what it means, of how precious
it is, to be an existent human being in the world.
The burqa, in fact, is at once the most inexpressive and most
expressive object in the city. The appareled energy it brings to
the policing of every digit of a woman, its elaborate abolition of
a self, tells us precisely how much some people have to pay for
the luxury of being in the world. It tells us that being is indeed
a luxury, for which some of us must pay very dearly.
That is what it says to us. This is what the burqa says to the
woman - or child - inside it:
Yes, you may exist. If you insist. But in order to be allowed to
exist, you will have to pay the ultimate price - non-existence.
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July 19th, 2010
No one may see who you are. You may never exchange a smile
on a street corner. Your thoughts you may keep. To yourself.
The burqa covers your mouth, conveying to you, and to the
world, your muteness.
Our response to the burqa is a variant of horror vacui;
appalled at the nullification it represents, we attempt to dress
it up, give it features, somehow animate it into a person.
Indeed one defense of the burqa you sometimes read among
Europeans and Americans has it that the burqa really makes
no difference: If you look closely, you can discern a woman's
smiling or frowning eyes behind the mesh; and if you talk to
her, and she talks back, you'll begin to realize she's just like
everyone else. If her seven-year-old daughter is also in a burqa,
you should make the same effort to treat her as you would any
other child.
The enormously strong opposition to the burqa in much
of Europe suggests that efforts like these to regard it, and
the women and children inside of it, as part of normal
multicultural human life have failed. Again, why?
Published by: philosophyandrew
parade their life, their equal share of the world. Women do not
get to have a world. Only men do. Good women know this.
Self-nullified women, today's Bartleby's, tell modern
democracies that they can extend equal rights to all, but there
will always be some people who disdain the hard-fought right
to exist, to be part of the social world. Not for them the
luxury of being; it costs too much, this business of leaving your
private retreat and venturing into the world of other human
beings. These women will live in horror - they will teach their
daughters to live in horror - of the free world. They will parade
that horror every day.
This self-nullification, imposed or embraced, is why, one after
another, the countries of Europe are saying no to the burqa.
The burqa is one luxury no self-respecting democracy can
afford.

*************************************
More often than not, when women who wear the burqa are
interviewed, they say little or nothing about religion. Typically,
they speak of their fear of male harassment. The burqa, they
say, protects them from men.
Outside of countries like Afghanistan, it is abnormal to harbor
so extreme a fear of public interaction with men that you
feel you must wear a burqa. Women this traumatized, this
imprisoningly beset by distorted perceptions of the world,
should be helped to overcome their distortions and rejoin the
human race. It's bizarre, and inhumane, to respond to women
who say these things by nodding your head understandingly
and keeping them in their sacks.

Or do these women say these things because their husbands

have made them afraid of men? Because their husbands have
told them that if they go outside uncovered their husbands
will kill them? That if they ever look at a man in public their
husbands will kill them?

If my husband told me these things, I would certainly be afraid

of men. I would also be living in a situation in which the courts
of my country should take an interest. But since I'm afraid to
say anything because of my husband's threats, there is no way
for the state to know that I'm living with a criminal. As are my
daughters.
It is also possible that there are burqa wearers who truly
believe that men will rape them or harass them mercilessly
if they walk outside wearing a dress rather than a sheet and
a mask. I mean, these women believe this on their own;
they have derived a sort of Andrea Dworkin on steroids sex
philosophy in which it is literally true that the act of being a
visible woman in the world is simply impossible. Can't be done.
Woman equals red flag to a bull.
When interviewed, these burqa wearers typically berate
women who go outside in jeans and blouses and make men
rape them. They express a complacent moral superiority
to loose women who instead of parading their nothingness

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